Song of a Blackbird

"I love this book for so many different reasons. It’s a graphic novel that is based on discovery. It’s got teenage angst in it. It’s set both in 2011 and during World War Two . It’s about the Dutch resistance. Also, I’m a big fan of dual-narrated titles. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. I would argue that it works incredibly well in this novel. It builds context. It builds relationships. There’s a grandmother with cancer who has a past that her granddaughter doesn’t know about, and through a series of artistic finds and memorabilia and paintings, she discovers her grandmother’s role in the Dutch resistance. Song of a Blackbird is captivating in every way. I’m in love with the block print graphic novel part of it, and I phenomenally love the back matter, with real photographs and text. This is a rare case where I might recommend that some read the back matter first, and others read the novel first, and then there are those of us who flip back and forth. I’m also very happy with the perfect binding with the French flaps. It is published by one of my favourite graphic novel publishers, First Second — if they publish it, I will read it. I think it’s ideal for a thoughtful or interested 12 year old, or a younger child who has some background about World War Two. It is what I call an “everybody book”, for everybody from age 12 to a hundred."